The In-Between of Christmastime

(Fortunately, not like the "Upside Down" in the TV show Stranger Things ...)

This has been a good week, as any week that begins with Christmas Day should be!  This year I was able to take the week between Christmas and New Year's off (long annoying work-related story, but the ending is happy!), so it's been extra nice.

And yes, it's been frigidly cold and today it is snowing, but a) I like wintertime, and b) I'm fortunate to have warm cozy clothes and kitties to cuddle.  Lots of tea, knitting, wine, reading, laughing, yummy food and treats, seeing friends and making new ones.  For such a crap year, my end of year has been perfect.

I knew things were going well when I ventured over to Loop earlier in the week to return some yarn, and had the chance to have a fun chat with friends who work there.  (Yes, I returned yarn - after I bought it for a specific project, it just didn't speak to me when I pulled it back out.  It hadn't been wound, and I had the receipt, so now I have a store credit, which will be very exciting down the road!)  When I left there, I decided to wander into the used book store two doors down to poke around.  I asked the guy if by any chance he had any books by Barbara Pym.  She is one of my fave authors, and most of her books are out of print.  And it's even hard to track them down via the library, so I figured it was worth asking him.

SCORE!!!!!

Behold - two hardcovers, one paperback, all in nearly perfect condition!  Even better?  All of them combined cost me just over twenty dollars!  To say it made my day was an understatement.

Then on Thursday evening, we went out to the 'burbs to have dinner with Dee and her husband Steve, and it was wonderful because a) now they live close and we can see them, b) we love them both, and c) WE GOT TO MEET GIROUX!!!!  Oh my God, he is so adorable, and he was showing off his new Philadelphia Flyers nametag, and he is perfect!  Needless to say, he was not as impressed with us (as one would expect of a cat), but he did let me kiss him and hug him, so even if he was just being polite, I was in 7th heaven!  We had a great evening, and got to see their really lovely and festive townhouse.  They took us to dinner at this AH-MAZING Indian restaurant, and then we had some of the best cherry pie ever at their house afterwards.  It was so much fun, and it's so nice that they moved up here from Florida. 

Also, The Tim's fingerless mitts were finished after a small (HA!) blip and he loves them and they fit!

(I'll write a post about them, including the story of the blip.  It's amusing so nothing to worry about.)  I also finished my Holly Berry Socks, and today will finish my For the Birds top, as all that has been left to do for a while now is the neckline, and between being busy with other stuff and then forgetting to wind another skein of yarn, it's just been patiently waiting. 

I didn't manage to knit 12 pairs of socks for my Box o' Socks this year, but I did knit 11 pairs!

Although, according to The Tim (Mr. Atheist), I did knit twelve, because I'm the sort of person "who would knit a pair of socks for Baby Jesus to keep his feet warm, and they don't need to be corporeal" ... I have to say that amused me greatly!  I think he thought I was feeling bad that I was one pair off, and was hoping to make me feel better.  :-)

Today we are staying put and just doing things around here that we are in the mood to do.  The Tim is baking olive bread, so the house smells really wonderful right now.  I'm getting ready to fold laundry and make our cheeseball for tomorrow evening.  And we're watching/listening to "Carols from Kings" which we recorded on Christmas Eve, so it's a very pleasing day.

I hope your week has been a good one as well.  If you are in the cold/snow snap, I do hope that you and yours are all OK.  Enjoy the rest of your New Year's holiday weekend!

Scenes of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

Oh what a wonderful Christmas Eve and Christmas Day we had!  Of course, we are still celebrating, but I thought I'd share some photos I took while we were enjoying things.

First of all - The Tim had to work on Christmas Eve, which was not in and of itself weird, since while he was at the bookstore, that was always the case.  However, in past years, he worked until the store closed at 7 p.m., and would usually get home and we would eat dinner by 8 p.m.  Not a lot of evening left after that, which was always fine, but not as good as this year by a lot!  This year he worked until 3 in the afternoon, and was home by 3:30 - it was like we had the whole day together, and that was THE BEST.

Christmas Eve while we were setting the table, etc. for dinner, Milo the Koodle sat on the chair across from the tree the entire time, and later into the evening.  We decided he was either a) hoping to catch Santa visiting, or, b) making sure Santa saw what a good boy he is (ahem). 

(He had been nervous all day (and is still recovering) from an event earlier in the day, so this is as much as we saw him.  That's a story for another post.)

We were amused at our Surprise Dinner Guest:

Who could it be???

Even though we didn't do as much decorating as usual this year due to one of The Tim's projects, our tree still looks great.

And yes, there are two Rudolph's under the tree.  The one on the right lights up and is supposed to be outside, but The Tim doesn't "want the weather to ruin him," so he stays inside ...

Jack was the first kitty to come downstairs on Christmas morning, and was quite pleased to see that Santa had in fact visited our house!

Stockings and packages were opened, toys were played with, treats were eaten, and general hilarity was the tone of the day.

The Tim put this ribbon/garland/whatever on Pip - when he was busy with something else, it was fine, but when he'd remember he was wearing it, he'd go nuts!  We took it off after a few minutes after taking this picture.

A few years ago, a friend sent our cats at that time a catnip-filled Newt Gingrich toy, and they really hated that sucker - they would attack it and tear at it, and it was hilarious.  This year, that same friend sent a catnip-stuffed version of our current Eejit in Chief, and he got a LOT of attacks, etc.  Which pleased us immensely.

Good boy, Jack.  Resist.

Hope. Anticipation. Love.

There is nothing that aggravates me more than the statement that Christmas is for children.  It implies that unless you are a child, or unless you have children or can be around them, that Christmas means nothing.  The people who spout this are generally the same people who complain that Christmas is too commercial and/or that the true meaning of Christmas is forgotten.

Here's the thing about Christmas though:  You don't need to be a child to love it.  I for one love it even more as an adult than I ever did when I was little.  And if you ask me, the single most exciting day on the calendar is today, Christmas Eve.  What?  But isn't Christmas Eve just the day you have to get through so you can get to the "real" holiday?

Christmas Eve is the very last day of Advent, the season of waiting, of expectation, of hope.  We've been told something is coming, and we have been preparing, and the hope has grown.  The anticipation is at a fever pitch.

Growing up, and now, Christmas Eve is a busy - but definitely fun busy - day.  As a kid, I would wake up early and have breakfast with my dad, who was an early riser.  Everyone else would still be asleep, and we would eat, drink, and discuss the day.  I'm sure I did most of the talking, and that 99% of it involved Santa - what should we leave for him and the reindeer, did it matter if there wasn't any snow - you know, important things like that.

But the big thing at our house for Christmas Eve was the Christmas dinner.  My parents were very social, and at some point they decided that since we had so many people who stopped in on Christmas Day, it was better to have our "official" Christmas dinner on Christmas Eve.  And that was as exciting as opening gifts the next day, because dinner was always full of "fancy" foods (read: things we could not regularly afford to have), and preparation happened throughout the day.  The fanciest linens came out to go on the table (after someone would iron them of course!), and - get this - we had appetizers!  Yep, every Christmas dinner started with shrimp cocktail, and if that isn't the height of living, I don't know what is.

Christmas Eve now is so much the same, but different.  The Tim usually has to be at work on Christmas Eve, as he does today.  So, the day starts with me having breakfast and planning the day with the cats.  We will decide the order of what needs to happen, which mainly involves making sure we have the ingredients for dinner, and some gift wrapping.  At some point this afternoon, I'll take a walk up to Rittenhouse Square, to be around people, and enjoy the hustle and bustle of this day without needing to worry about not being ready for it.  This is the time when Dug was alive when we would put on his reindeer antlers and jingle bell collar and make people smile when they saw him.  It's not the same at all without him, but it's still part of my Christmas Eve.

Then I'll come home and start fixing our Christmas Eve Risotto.  This year, The Tim will actually be home after 3:00 instead of at 7:00, so that will be exciting!  (Though I'm guessing he'll probably take a nap, so my day will be mostly the same.)  After a leisurely meal, we'll just spend the evening relaxing and watching corny Christmas programs.  This one (but only "The Night Before Christmas" part) is an absolute must-see:

We absolutely LOVE this because it is just so ... much.  (The Tim:  "I think the Nativity one is really bad.  It looks so fake."  This is why we don't watch it.  Apparently the high quality of the first one causes the second to pale by comparison ...)

Before we head to bed, we put gifts under the tree, and put the Baby Jesus into the creche (but only after we have all given him a kiss and said, "Happy Birthday, Baby Jesus" ... yeah, we're weird that way).  Then we ring the sleigh bells that hang on our front door to remind Santa where we live, and it's up to him from there.

And you know what?  Every single year, when we get up the next morning, he has remembered to stop at our house!  We have stockings filled with goodies, and it's time to get Christmas Day underway.

It's the best.  But nothing beats Christmas Eve, because it's a day of Hope. Anticipation.  Love.

And there were in the same country, shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.  And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them; and they were sore afraid.

And the angel said unto them: "Fear not:  for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.   And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger."

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

**********

This post is part of sprite's Virtual Advent Tour, and for another year, not only have I participated, but I've enjoyed it all.  Thanks to her for keeping it going and getting it organized so that we can all appreciate others' thoughts, traditions, and ideas for the season.

Joyous Christmas Eve to all of you!

For Your Consideration on the Saturday Before Christmas Day

I used to work with a woman who had this posted on her wall.  And though I am not an overly religious person, and in some ways it's corny, I think it has some good reminders for all of us, especially at Christmastime, so I decided to share it with you today.  I hope you are enjoying the season.

1 Corinthians 13 for Christmas

If I decorate my house perfectly with plaid bows, strands of twinkling lights, and shiny balls, but do not show love to my family, I’m just another decorator.

If I slave away in the kitchen, baking dozens of Christmas cookies, preparing gourmet meals and arranging a beautifully adorned table at mealtime, but do not show love to my family, I’m just another cook.

If I work at the soup kitchen, carol in the nursing home and give all that I have to charity, but do not show love to my family, it profits me nothing.

If I trim the spruce with shimmering angels and crocheted snowflakes, attend a myriad of holiday parties and sing in the choir’s cantata, but do not focus on Christ, I have missed the point.

Love stops the cooking to hug the child.

Love sets aside the decorating to kiss the husband.

Love is kind, though harried and tired.

Love doesn’t envy another’s home that has coordinated Christmas china and table linens.

Love doesn’t yell at the kids to get out of the way.

Love doesn’t give only to those who are able to give in return, but rejoices in giving to those who can’t.

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never fails.

Video games will break, pearl necklaces will be lost, golf clubs will rust.

But giving the gift of love will endure.

Festive Furball Friday of Christmases Past

I am especially missing our sweet Jetsam this Christmas season.  He used to love being involved in all of it, all the time.  (The others participate, but thankfully not every minute - let's just say they don't "get" it the way Jetsam seemed to ...)

But Christmas is as much about yesterday as today, so I'm sharing these photos with you, and I hope that you have a loved and adored one who, even if you miss them being right here to hug, makes you happy to love and remember.  

Have a Happy Christmas weekend!

 Helping The Tim check the string of lights

Looking to see if Santa's sleigh is on its way 

A kiss for Rudolph